By BARBARA GREEN
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North Texas saw its hottest days of the year this week and in many areas broke records.
Bowie and Nocona experienced the highest temperatures of the year this past week and long stretches of triple-digit temperatures. Records from the National Weather Service show the all-time highest temperature for Wichita Falls was 117 degrees on June 28, 1980. While it got hot this week the high for the week was 114 on July 20. Five of the all-time highs were from June and July of 1980.
The summer of 2011 also is remembered for not only high heat but the extreme drought that accompanied it. There were more 100-degree days in 2011 than the entire summer of 2021. Bowie and Nocona lakes fell drastically during that time and conservation efforts were instituted.
During June Bowie had 14 days in the mid- to upper-90s and only one day over 100 on June 25, 100.04 degrees. However, in July there have been 17 days where the mercury topped 100. There was a nine-day stretch of 100-plus temps from July 12 through July 15, but after a two-day break at a high of 98.6, it went back up over 100 for four days.
This week the temperatures have topped out at 110.66 degrees on July 20 and 109.4 on July 21, dropping to a humid 94.82 on July 22. On July 8 the high was 108.32 and the day before it was 104.36.
Nocona recorded five days in June where the temperature was above 100 with a high of 102.38 degrees on June 13. The community has topped 100 every day since July 6. On July 20 the highest temperature of the period was 112.3 on July 20.

Read the full story in the weekend Bowie News.